Dory Anderson and her husband Kirk drink a lot of coffee. She figures that with client meetings in coffee shops and early morning beverage runs, the couple buys as many as five cups per day. So when Anderson, who owns her own Stillwater-based public relations firm, heard about Aladdin's Do the Reuse Challenge, she joined, vowing not to use paper coffee cups for 30 days. She accounted her family's journey at dothereusechallenge.com.

The challenge, sponsored by lunch box and beverage container company Aladdin, selected nine families to blog about their attempts to reduce the amount of paper products they used for 30 days. They were supplied with a bundle of reusable containers to get started. The Frana family of Shakopee also participated.

In one month, the blogging families saved nearly 500 paper cups and water bottles and saved $555 by packing lunches and drinks. Inspired by the bloggers, more than 1,000 people at home jumped at the challenge and kept 10,000 disposable cups and bottles out of the garbage incinerator and saved $42,040, Aladdin said.

If 155 million people - half of the U.S. population - were to participate in a similar challenge, Aladdin estimates the effort could save:

  • 2.1 billion water bottles and $2.1 billion by drinking from the tap
  • 950 million paper cups and $2.8 billion by switching to reusable mugs
  • $16.3 billion and 930 billion calories by bringing lunch from home

The Anderson family participated in the coffee cup challenge. While they don't drink coffee, the Anderon's four children got involved as the cup police. When Anderson's husband came home with a cup of coffee from their favorite coffee shop a week into the challenge, 11-year-old daughter Hanna "was literally freaking out ," she said.

After that strong reaction, the family didn't touch another paper cup during the month of September. Anderson always kept a spare mug in her car and made more java at home, toting it around in a coffee-filled thermos. She figures she cut her coffee shop visits in half and saved as much as $270.

Now that the challenge is over, the family hasn't gone back to its old ways. Hanna is packing her lunch in reusable containers. The family totes reusable shopping bags to the grocery store. "It has been really painless," she said of the habit change, especially when it comes her kids. "I think it's just innate for kids to want to learn and grow."

How about you? Have you made a conscious effort to reduce the amount of paper products you use? Do you think it makes a difference? How much money do you think you'd save?